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DIRECT &INDIRECT
SPEECHSULIANA WAN CHIK
ENGLISH LANGUAGE UNIT
LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT
IPG KAMPUS PERLIS
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DIRECT SPEECH
Giving the exact words that someoneutters or has uttered in speech or
writing I am being paid by the hour, she said.
It is usually signalled by being
enclosed in quotation marks. I am being paid by the hour, she said.
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INDIRECT SPEECH
Conveys a report of what has beensaid or written.
Does so in the words of a subsequentreporter.
I am being paid by the hour, she said.
She said she was being paid by thehour.
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cont
Direct and indirect speeches are twoways used in reporting what
someone has said.
It is important to learn how the
transformation goes so as to be
accurate in your interactions with theothers.
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cont
In direct speech the reporter repeatsthe original words of the speaker:
Leila said, The cat has broken the
vase.
In the indirect (reported) speech the
reporter gives the exact meaning of
the speaker's utterance without
necessarily repeating the exact words
of the speaker:
Leila said (that) the cat had broken
the vase.
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Rules of Transformation
The makeover of a direct utterance to
indirect speech has to abide to some
rules.
In indirect (reported) speech the
tenses have to be changed in a way
that the reporter (you) goes a step
back in the time line with each tense.
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cont
For instance, if the tense in the time
of speaking (direct speech) is the
present, it becomes past in the
reported speech. If it is in the past, it is reported in the
past perfect.
If it is in the future, it is reported in theconditional and so on.
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R1: Change of tenses
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Direct Speech Indirect Speech
simple present
He said, I go to school every day.
simple past
He said (that) he went to school every day.
simple past
He said, I went to school every day.
past perfect
He said (that) he had gone to school every day.
present perfect
He said, I have gone to school every day.
past perfect
He said (that) he had gone to school every day.
present progressive
He said, I am going to school every day.
past progressive
He said (that) he was going to school every day.
past progressive
He said, I was going to school every day.
perfect progressive
He said (that) he had been going to school every
day,
future (will)
He said, I will go to school every day.
would + verb name
He said (that) he would go to school every day.
future (going to)
He said, I am going to school every day.
present progressive
He said (that) he is going to school every day.
past progressive
He said (that) he was going to school every day
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Direct Speech Indirect Speech
auxiliary + verb name
He said, Do you go to
school every day?
He said, Where do you
go to school?
simple past
He asked me if I went to
school every day.*
He asked me where I
went to school.
imperative
He said, Go to schoolevery day.
infinitive
He said to go to schoolevery day.
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cont
The tenses with auxiliaries (am /is/are/ was/ were/ have/ has/ have
been etc) in the direct speech are
the easiest ones to report.
You need only to deal with the
auxiliary and forgetabout the main
verb.
That's why the "continuous"; and
"perfect tenses are the easiest to do.
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cont
Look at these examples:- John said, "I am going to look for a
larger flat"
- John said that he was going to lookfor a larger flat.
- Sue said, "I have done my
homework."- Sue said that she haddone her
homework.
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CHANGE in MODALS
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECHwill
She said, "I'll teach English online
tomorrow."
would
She said she would teach English online
tomorrow.
can
She said, "I can teach English online."
could
She said she could teach English online.
must
She said, "I must have a computer to
teach English online."
had to
She said she had to have a computer to
teach English online.
shallShe said, "What shall we learn today?"
shouldShe asked what we should learn today.
may
She said, "May I open a new browser?"
might
She asked if she might open a new
browser.
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TIME CHANGE
If the reported sentence contains anexpression of time, you must change
it to fit in with the time of reporting.
For example we need to change
words like here and yesterdayif they
have different meanings at the timeand place of reporting.
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Today + 24 hours - Indirect speech
"Today's lesson is on presentations. She said yesterday's lesson was onpresentations.
Expressions of time if reported on a different day
this (evening) that (evening)
today yesterday ...
these (days) those (days)
now then
(a week) ago (a week) before
last weekend the weekend before last / the previous weekend
here there
next (week) the following (week)
tomorrow the next/following day
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PRONOUN CHANGE
In reported speech, the pronoun oftenchanges.
For example:
Me You
"Iteach English
online."
Shesaid she teaches
English online.
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REPORTING VERB
Said, toldand askedare the mostcommon verbs used in indirect
speech.
We use askedto report questions:- For example: IaskedLynne what time
the lesson started.
We use to ldwith an object.
For example: Lynne to ldme she felt
tired.
!Note- Here me is the object.
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We usually use saidwithout anobject.
For example: Lynne saidshe was goingto teach online.
Ifsaidis used with an object we mustinclude to;
For example: Lynne saidtome thatshe'd never been to China.
!Note- We usually use to ld.
For example: Lynne to ldme that she'dnever been to China.
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There are many other verbs we can useapart from said, told and asked.
These include:-
Using them properly can make whatyou say much more interesting andinformative.
accused, admitted, advised, alleged,
agreed, apologised, begged, boasted,
complained, denied, explained, implied,
invited, offered, ordered, promised,
replied, suggested and thought.
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For example:
He asked me to come to the party:-
He invited me to the party.
He begged me to come to the party.
He ordered me to come to the party.
He advised me to come to the party.He suggested I should come to the party
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If the reporting verb (the main verb of
the sentences, e.g., said, is in the
past, the verb in the noun clause willusually be in a past form.
If the reporting verb is simple present,
present perfect, or future, the nounclause verb is not changed.She says, "I wash my hairevery day."
She says she washes her
hair every day
She has said, "I wash my
hair every day.
She has said that she
washes her hair every day.
She will say, "I wash my hair
every day."
She will say that she
washes her hair every day.
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*Exceptions:
If the reported sentence deals witha fact or general truth, the present
tense is (can be) retained.
She said that the moon causes the tides.
If the speakerreports something
immediately or soon after it was said,
the noun clause verb often remains as
spoken. A: What did the conductor say?
B: He said that the next stop is
Northgate.
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Ifwillis the modal in the reportedutterance and expresses future time,
and
If the situation described in the quotestill holds true at the time of the
indirect report, the willmay not be
changed to wouldeven though the
reporting verb is in the past tense:
Mr. Arden said that a volcanic eruption
will occur next year.
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THE END
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